Survey dissects Oregon's thorny religious divide

The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life has released one of the largest polls ever of religious life in America - including extensive findings from each of the states. The poll confirms two cross-currents in Oregon that help explain something about the polarized politics we often find here.

On one hand, the poll confirms what has long been said about Oregon: that it is one of the most unchurched states in the country. In all, 27 percent of Oregonians say they are unaffiliated with any religion, the highest such percentage in the country (although Colorado and the New England states of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine are close behind). That 27 percent understates the percentage of people who are not really involved with organized religion. Many people identify with a religion - sometimes because of the social pressure to do so - but attend church only rarely.

At the same time, Oregon has a relatively high percentage of traditional evangelicals - 30 percent, compared to 26 percent nationally. And that national average is skewed by the very high percentage of evangelicals in the South. (Oregon is also one of a cluster of seven states with a relatively high percentage of Mormons, who also often line up with evangelicals politically.)

The findings are not surprising. As in much of the West, people who migrated often became unmoored from family and the mainstream faiths that once dominated American life. As a result, the fast-growing evangelical movement flourished here, as did secularism.

You can probably see where I'm going with this. We have strong, divergent groups in Oregon who differ greatly in how they see the world, particularly on social issues like gay rights and abortion.